Notification issued for penultimate phase of Lok Sabha polls

New Delhi, Apr 12 (PTI): Notification was issued on Saturday for the penultimate phase of Lok Sabha elections to be held on May 7 in 64 constituencies spread across seven states.

A maximum of 25 seats in Andhra Pradesh will witness polling on that day. This is the first Lok Sabha election after a Bill to carve out Telangana from parts of Andhra Pradesh was passed by Parliament. The appointed date for the creation of Telangana is June 2.

Most of the parliamentary constituencies from the Seemandhra region of the state will go to polls in this phase.

Elections will also be held in 15 seats in Uttar Pradesh, including Amethi where Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi is pitted against AAP candidate Kumar Vishwas and BJP's Smriti Irani.

Seven seats in Bihar, four in Himachal Pradesh, two in Jammu and Kashmir, five in Uttarakhand and six in West Bengal will also go to polls on May 7.

Other key candidates in the contest in this phase are UP Congress chief Nirmal Khatri from Faizabad, BJP leader Anurag Thakur from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat's wife Renuka from Haridwar.

Rawat had vacated the Haridwar seat after he became the Chief Minister of the hill state.

For the May 7 polls, candidates can file nominations till April 19 while scrutiny will take place on April 21. Those who wish to withdraw from the contest can do so by April 23.

The 9th and the last phase of general election will be held on on May 12 in which electorate of 41 constituencies spread across three states will exercise their franchise. The notification for the last phase will be issued on April 17.

The nine-phased polling exercise will end on May 12 and counting of votes will be held on May